You have to have a thick skin when you’re an actor and auditioning.
Ryan Gosling revealed during a GQ cover story that his role in 2004’s The Notebook was not cast because he was perfect for the job.
“[Director Nick Cassavetes ] straight up told me: ‘The fact that you have no natural leading man qualities is why I want you to be my leading man,’” Gosling said.
Gosling compared acting to a different form of therapy.
“I was trying to find a place to put all these things that were happening to me. And these films became ways to do that, like time capsules. So you kinda make the movie for yourselves. Doesn’t matter if anyone else does, you know? But I think, having done a lot of that, I realize that I kind of feel like my job is for other people to feel it. And it’s cool if I do, but that’s really not the point. The point is that other people do.”
Gosling added of his current career outlook, “I treat it more like work now, and not like it’s, you know, therapy. It’s a job, and I think in a way that allows me to be better at it because there’s less interference.”